


Karma

by ElleGrace



Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: 'Optimus' Girl' Is A Hazardous Phrase, Bad Jokes, Childhood Trauma, Cons Are Asses, Dysfunctional At Best, Elita One Can Be A Bitch, Epps Is A Sap, Eventual Smut, Everyone Needs A Hug, FOR FUCK'S SAKE, Feminist Themes, French Characters, Galloway Is A Fuck, Girl Gang, Holoforms (Transformers), How Did Optimus Get A Human Child, How Do I Tag, Human Allspark, I lied, I swear I know what I'm doing, Ironhide Is Oblivious, Jazz Hands With Jazz's Hands, Karma Needs A Vacation, Lennox Is A Good Dad, Lennox Needs A Nap, Leo Creates Chaos, Mearing Is Done, Megatron And Optimus Are Brothers, Mikaela Is A Badass, Multi, Nightmares, No Carly Hate, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Ratchet Is A Grump, Robot/Human Relationships, Russian Mafia, She Adopted Him That's How, Slow Burn, Sparkmates, Starscream being Starscream, Tea, Team as Family, Teenage Annabelle Lennox, That's Not How The Force Works, The Allspark Needs A Time Out, The Allspark Ships It, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, War, Wheeljack Should Come With A Warning Sign, Why is the Rum Gone?, okay maybe a little, the twins did it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-21
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2020-12-27 08:42:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21115940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElleGrace/pseuds/ElleGrace
Summary: "Karma is only a bitch if you are."She never thought that she would do more with her life than run from her demons and her mother. Turns out NEST has other plans that require her help. But once they get what they want will they ask her to stay or will they use her and toss her aside like everyone else?





	1. Dernière Danse

_It's funny how it all goes down _

_ Don't be sorry when it comes around _

_ I'm like, "Oh my god, I think it's karma" _

_ (Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh) _

_ Ain't it funny how it all adds up _

_ When you're always tryna push your luck? _

_ I'm like, "Oh my god, I think it's karma" _

_ (Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh) _

** _Karma (MARINA)_ **

* * *

Karma had most certainly thought she was being duped when she had been told she was being released from the mental institution to work for the government. But the amount of effort the men escorting her were going through to retain their confidentiality was worse than the mafia so she was starting to reconsider. Then again she was also making a list of people she knew would go to such lengths for a prank or attempt on her life. It was an unfortunately long list.

She had remained quiet as told and out of uneasiness more than anything had remained nearly pin straight. The men had yet to give her a reason to trust them much less proof that they were who they claimed to be so she had yet to relax and her legs were falling asleep as a result. She tried subtly wiggling her appendages out from her toes up; after all, she needed to be able to run or fight without falling on her face if need be.

"Legs falling asleep?" one of the men asked her, genuine curiosity in his voice.

"It's been a long ride," she answered lowly, shifting further away from him so her side was pressed against the door.

Yeah, on top of a 22 hour flight which she had forced herself to remain awake for.

"Sorry about that. We're almost there."

Karma was happy to shut up again but the man tried to strike up a conversation as if she wasn't blind folded and surrounded by armed men.

"So you're the big guns, huh?"

Karma turned towards him despite not being able to see him so he could see her confusion, "What?"

There was a pause where Karma assumed he was looking around to his fellow soldiers for help.

"Sorry, I didn't realize they didn't tell you anything."

"Yeah, not even a name. Just got blind folded and stuffed in a car after I was told that the government wanted me to work for them. Your hospitality is amazing, 5 stars," she said, really laying on the sarcasm at the end.

There was a strangled laugh from the guy in the passenger seat.

"Are we sure she's the right one? I thought we were picking up an insane chick," the driver cut in before anyone could comment.

Karma gave a frustrated huff. Maybe she had been right to think she had been duped.

"First of all it's rude to refer to someone as 'chick'. I'm a woman not a baby chicken. Secondly, I'm not insane. In fact the only mental illness I could possibly be diagnosed with is depression and that hasn't relapsed in over a decade. If anyone had done their research you would know that I was only there to keep a dangerous mafia group from finding me."

The sound of someone scratching their head met her ears but no one said anything.

"So do have the right _ woman _ or not?"

Instead of answering her the two in the front started whispering about something to do with 'Lennox' and the 'Autobots' and Karma wasn't sure if she had heard correctly but they spoke about someone called 'Optimus Prime'. What kind of name was that?

The guy next to her didn't try to make conversation again so she shifted back against the door.

It was minutes later that they came to a stop and the driver spoke to someone about her. One of the soldiers at the gate she assumed. A buzz sounded and a gate of some kind moved before the continued on.

The car got colder as shadows washed over them and Karma had to resist the urge to shiver at the sudden loss of sun warmth on her skin. The car stopped again seconds later and the engine was killed as the soldiers climbed out. Karma let herself be dragged out of the car and her socked feet met equally cold cement.

She suddenly regretted asking for a change of clothes.

The blind fold was less than gently ripped from her face and she nearly threw out her arm to retaliate a potential attack. She seriously had to rein it in before she ended up getting shot.

Instead the only attack was the hard fluorescent lights hanging high above from the hanger rafters. She squinted hard and flinched away from the soldier that had removed the blind fold. He grabbed her arm as if she was trying to make a break for it. Where would she even go? She had no clue where she was.

"Easy soldier, she was just flinching because of the sudden light. You can let her go," the man was dressed in army greens and couldn't have been more than 3 or 4 years older than Karma herself. He had a short, standard issue short back and sides haircut, broad-set shoulders, handsome features but was clearly a stressed man and very short on sleep.

Standing at his side was a dark skinned African American who was about a head shorter than the first man, dressed in the same khaki patterns. He however, was bald, and his eyes were very expressive, less tired; he looked a little more relaxed and less authoritative than the taller man.

The soldier grumbled to himself but released her arm and moved to stand with the other two men who had brought her in. She found relief in the fact that she had accurately assumed them to be nowhere near the top of the chain of command and less than capable of having actually harming her. Or perhaps they might've ended up surprising or eight years locked up had her less fighting fit than she had earlier calculated upon being told of her release.

"No problems I trust?" the Caucasian man asked.

"Well she was-"

He held up his hand to the soldier, "I was asking her. You three are dismissed. Ironhide and the rest of your squadron are waiting for you to join them in the training room."

The three soldiers jumped to attention and chorused, "Sir, yes, sir," before saluting and jogging off.

The two men turned back to her.

"Did they give you any problems?"

Karma shook her head, "Besides not telling me anything and the one who grabbed me referring to me as 'chick'? Nope."

The African American man frowned, "Really? They were asked to brief you so you could start as soon as possible."

"We'll deal with that later. I'm Captain William Lennox and this is Sergeant Robert Epps. Welcome to NEST," Lennox introduced.

"Uh, thanks. Karma Marion. Can I possibly get a change of clothes before this 'briefing'? I really do look insane walking around a military base in this. I don't care what as long as it covers more than this," Karma said as she ruffled her patient gown to exaggerate her point. She was just glad it wasn't one of those ties in the back kind at this point.

Epps looked to Lennox and shrugged, "Mikaela or Maggie might have something that'll fit her."

"Good. You wanna take her to one of them while I go tell Optimus and Morshower she's here?"

"Sure thing. I'll join you after and have them bring her to the interrogation room."

Lennox nodded and bid Karma goodbye before walking off.

Epps turned back to her and gestured for him to follow him. Karma did so, slipping a little as she started after him too quickly. Epps contained a laugh and paused to let her take off her socks so she wouldn't slip on her face or ass.

"So Mikaela and Maggie are the only permanent female residence on base as of right now but they're great. Mikaela is our mechanic and Maggie is one of our top computer specialists. Hopefully one of them has something that'll fit you a little better than something standard issue," Epps explained as they walked.

"They ever get fed up with all of the testosterone around here?" Karma joked.

That had Epps actually laughing.

"What's so funny?" a female voice called out.

Legs stuck out from under a yellow and black Camaro indicating whoever it was was most likely under the vehicle. A black haired woman a few years younger than Karma maneuvered herself out from under the car and was surprisingly clean for being the base mechanic.

"Mikaela this is Karma. She's the mafia expert Lennox and Optimus told us Morshower was bringing in for our friend in interrogation."

Karma gave a short laugh, "So that's what I'm here for. Someone I know then I'm guessing."

"I would assume so," Mikaela shrugged as she held out her hand. Karma shook it politely before pulling back.

"Karma was just asking if you and Maggie get fed up with all of the testosterone being the only girls on base right now," Epps told her, "We were hoping one of you might have something she could wear while she's here."

Mikaela kicked her creeper away from the Camaro as she nodded.

"I'll be back Bee," she called back as she headed away from the vehicle, "I'll find her something, Epps," she directed at the man as she pulled Karma along after her.

"Bring her to interrogation when you're done!" he called after them.

Mikaela waved him off and headed towards the barracks.

"It's nice to know there will be another woman on base now. It can be suffocating around here sometimes. Not that most of them mean to be like that but men will be men."

Karma frowned, "No, men will be held accountable for their actions."

"Oh they are," Mikaela grinned back at her, "Trust me, Optimus would never let anyone treat us poorly without consequence. He's just about the most morally right guy you'll ever meet. Luckily it rubs off on the soldiers after awhile or they get transferred if they don't stop. No room for argument or anything."

"I've heard that name about half a dozen times in the last half hour, who is Optimus?"

"He’s the leader of the Autobots, one of the squadrons here on base. Oh, and all of the Autobots have... odd names... so if you hear one just know that they're one of them."

"Got it."

Mikaela punched in the code to unlock her door and headed through it before it had even opened all of the way.

"So what were you thinking? Civilian clothes or standard issue?" she asked as she strode across her room to where the closet stood beside the bathroom and pulled open the metal bi-fold doors.

"Standard issue is fine. That way I won't feel bad if I end up not giving them back."

"Good point," Mikaela shrugged as she started tossing pieces at the woman, "You can use the bathroom to change. What size shoes do you wear?"

"8," Karma called back as she slipped into the bathroom and started stripping.

"We'll have to go to Maggie's closet for shoes then, I'm a size 7. I don't think you'd appreciate losing your toes over something to cover your feet."

Karma laughed as she yanked on the black tank top and army green coveralls, "I mean, if it wasn't a military base and I wasn't about to interrogate a member of the mafia I would walk around bare foot." She stepped out of the bathroom as she tied the sleeves of the coveralls around her waist and zipped them up as far as she could with the knot. She accepted the hair tie Mikaela offered her and roughly pulled her long black hair up into a mess of a ponytail.

"Maggie should be in her room right now so let's go get you some shoes."

"Thanks. I really appreciate this."

Mikaela lead the way into the hall again and locked her room, "Well neither of us would let you walk around in a paper gown. Just because it was a pull over one does not make it acceptable to be walking around in when you need to be focusing on work not snapping back at soldiers who catcall you." she said as she headed down the hall to another door and knocked.

A blonde Australian woman answered after a minute.

"Hey, MK, what's up?" Maggie asked.

"Karma here needs to borrow a pair of shoes."

Maggie motioned them in as she walked to her closet, "The big guns Morshower was talking about for that thug they brought in right?"

"I guess," Karma answered as she looked around at the computers and tech strewn around the room. Most of them looked in progress and some of them were smashed as if the woman had gotten taken her frustrations out on them. Others were simply blueprints and sketches which were laying and hanging from every possible place in the room.

"She's getting a workshop soon but there's been a delay in its construction so the chaos in here got worse," Mikaela whispered.

Karma nodded but didn't take her eyes off the organized mess of the room. Truthfully it fascinated her and made her long for a place to create her own beautiful chaos. Though her talents laid in art not technology.

Maggie reappeared from her closet with a pair of black combat boots and handed them over to Karma. She was quick to put back on her socks and the boots.

"Someone might as well wear them. They've just been collecting dust because I have no use for them and Mikaela wears a smaller size," Maggie commented as Karma tied them up.

"Thanks." She stood and the two women grinned at her, "What?"

Mikaela shifted her weight as she spoke, "It's just that you would never know that you didn't belong here, especially wearing that."

Karma laughed so hard she doubled over slightly. Maggie and Mikaela exchanged a worried look as they let her laugh it out. When she finally calmed down both women looked at her expectantly.

"Are you both that swamped in testosterone that you've already grown attached to me?"

"I wouldn't say we're attached to you. It's just that you look the part."

"Honest," Maggie added, "Now get going before someone sends a SWAT team looking for you."

With that they were shoved out of her room and the door clicked behind them indicating it had been locked. Mikaela practically dragged Karma after her as she ran off through the halls of the hanger.

As much as she hated to admit it, Karma really did already like it here. Mikaela and Maggie had been kind and warm and hadn't treated her as if she was the mental patient she was pretending to be. It was a welcome change from her usual day and a big relief considering she had no idea how long she would be here or what NEST's plan for her was.

Heads turned their direction as the came barreling down the halls laughing. Office doors opened to see what all of the noise was and soldier and technicians alike had to jump out of their way. No one seemed to question Karma's sudden appearance on base but rather why they were running and if they should be running too. The second question baffled Karma but Mikaela simply yelled out answers and ran on. Who or what on base could make everyone on base ask if they should be running too and not question the stranger running with their mechanic?

It wasn't long before Lennox, Epps, and three other soldiers came into view. All of them turning at the sound of their laughter and pounding footsteps and smiles blossoming on Lennox and Epps' faces at the sight.

Mikaela barely managed to stop before the men and her sudden spot sent Karma crashing into her shoulder and sprawling towards the floor. A pair of strong arms caught her before she could smash her face in the concrete floor.

"Careful." came a deep baritone voice which sent a shiver down her spine.

Karma's breath came out heavy as she tried to calm her racing heart, "Merci, mon loup," she managed as he helped her straighten on her feet.

"I was starting to think we would have to come find you two," Lennox said to Mikaela behind her skewing everyone's attention to him instead of Karma's words.

Well everyone except Optimus, he had not only heard her but had already translated it, 'thank you, my wolf', a French term of romantic endearment. But before he could ask what she had meant by it Morshower and Lennox were briefing her on what they needed her to do.

After an hour of going over what they needed her to ask and how to respond to certain responses Karma was beyond annoyed. If they were going to poorly coach this much they might as well have just set a soldier in instead of dragging her all the way here. Wherever here is.

"I know how to interrogate someone and we've gone over these questions 27 times," she complained aloud cutting off Morshower.

"It hasn't been 27-"

She held up a finger to cut him off again, "Actually it has," the general frowned at her but she continued before he could speak, "This is what I did for the mafia and I was very good at it. Otherwise you would have kidnapped someone else to do your leg work. So stop talking at me and let me talk at him."

"I still don't think you're prepared for this," Morshower told her as he crossed his arms over his chest, "This information is highly classified."

"I can tell but you're not too worried about it if you turned to someone like me for help. By the way, just because your wife left you does not mean you have to take it out on your men."

Behind her Lennox coughed loudly and Epps made a sputtering sound as if he was trying to cut off his laugh. The general went visibly red with anger and started to argue.

"I'm good at what I do because I'm observant and tend not to share what I notice. There are tan lines around where your ring used to be, still stark in contrast to your tan meaning it was recent. You're blunt and cold with your men because you don't want them to notice you're really in pain but also because you're jealous that they have managed to keep their wives while yours left you. And by the way you've blatantly ignored Mikaela this whole time I'm going to assume it was a younger woman she ran off with."

Everyone one stood in stunned silence as they watched the general's anger fade to embarrassment. He cleared his throat and straightened his uniform with a nod to Lennox.

"Send her in." with that he saluted the soldiers in the room and left in a hurry.

Mikaela was the first to react, laughing as she walked over to Karma, "I think you hit the nail on the head."

"Did I pass?" Karma asked as she glanced back at Lennox.

The man shook himself out of his daze and moved to hand her the file of information they had collected and were looking to find out, "With flying colors. Have fun," he told her as he held open the door to the interrogation room for her.

"Thanks," She threw him a wink as she walked in and let the door gently click shut behind her.

Sitting at the table was a sandy haired man in a suit. He had his head down but looked up at the sound of Karma's voice.

He stared wide eyed at her as if he was looking at a ghost, "You're supposed to be dead."


	2. Giants

"And you're supposed to be in prison," Karma grinned as she sat across from him, "How are you doing, Harry?"

"Well besides being locked up in here, I'm doing pretty good."

The pair exchanged a few more pleasantries before Harry grew serious.

"What are you doing here, Kar?" Karma feigned a confused look, "Come on, Karma. If I were you I would be living a normal life as far from your mother’s world as possible, not in here with me."

"Well I was perfectly well hidden until I was dragged here to get this stuff out of you! So tell me what they want to know so I can leave!" she snapped back at him, "Well... at least I think I can."

Harry clenched his fists as he stared at her astonished. He laughed harshly and sat back, rapping his knuckles on the table.

"So you don't know if they'll let you go now that they’ve got you?" Karma shook her head. "ANd you’re not even here of your own free will?" Another shake. "Talked to your mom lately?"

Karma's eyes snapped up to meet Harry's, "Do not speak of her to me."

"Well I heard she’s looking for you again. She never did believe that little show you and Leanne put on. Something about deciding you needed to come home and learn your lesson. Where is she right now, Karma?" Harry told her as he leaned on the table again.

She fixed him a sweet smile and leaned forward as well, “Well you tell her that if she tries to come after me in any way that I  _ will  _ come home and it will be to put her head on a lead pipe and plant it as a message to the entire mafia.” Harry sat back as shock washed over his features and behind the one way glass the onlookers shared concerned looks, “Oh, and remind her to get a check up on her leg, I swear she forgets she can do that,” she added as she calmly opened the file.

“Sure thing,” Harry nodded stiffly.

"So the... Decepticons... tell me what you know."

Harry relaxed easier than the others showing just how used to that kind of talk he was used too.

"Oh come on, Kar. Why are you doing this?" he asked with an exaggerated sigh.

"What do you know about the Decepticons?" Karma pressed again.

"Nothing! I don't even know what you're talking about."

Karma gave him a pointed look and closed the file to fold her hands over it. She studied him for a moment before smirking and standing again to circle him and the table.

"You recently got a girlfriend. One that you clearly love by the… upgrade in your personal appearance. Planning to propose too I saw. Pretty ring by the way. Did you pay for it or did come out of the fund?" Harry was already stiff as a board as he waited for him to tear him to shreds like she used too, "Because I'm guessing it was the fund. You were never the best man to put on a job but you were always a good rat, sticking your nose everywhere it doesn't belong. The perfect informant. So I know damn well that you know exactly what I'm talking about and I bet that pretty ring out there and your new relationship that you can answer every question I've been given to ask you," She grabbed the hair on the back of his head and yanked his head back to look her in the eyes, "Et vous le feriez si vous voulez la revoir, et encore moins sortir vivant de cette pièce. Sommes-nous clair?"

Harry swallowed hard, blinking rapidly out of discomfort.

"Are we clear?" she repeated in English, pulling harder.

He bit his lip and nodded quickly, just glad she had started soft to give him a chance to yield.

Her sweet smile returned as she released him and sat down to open the file again, "Good. Now, what do you know about the Decepticons?" a bit of a pointed look to emphasize her point, "I want everything, no matter how small."

Behind the one way glass humans and Cybertronians alike had never seen any one spill so much so fast with so little effort.

Mikaela glanced between Karma who was taking notes and Lennox who was staring in amazement, "Who is she?"

"The big guns," Epps replied as he turned away from the window to throw out his bad coffee seeing as he obviously wouldn't need it.

"I think the more appropriate question is personality is she faking," Prowl commented as he observed Karma similarly to the way she had Harry and Morshower.

“What do you mean?”

"She clearly seems to easily switch between who she acts like for us and who she acts like for Harry,” he explained as they watched her, “She’s quite good at balancing the two. Clearly she’s been doing it for awhile now.”

Mikaela crossed her arms as she shifted her attention to Optimus and Prowl, “By the way, what was that last bit she said to him?”

“She was speaking French and threatened both his relationship and his life,” Optimus supplied for her.

The woman donned a sly smirk as she glanced back as the other woman, “And what did she say to you earlier, Boss Bot? It seemed to fluster you a bit.”

Optimus made a noise that was similar to if his bipedal form was clearing its throat before he regained his composure, “‘Merci, mon loup’. It translates to 'thank you, my wolf', it’s a French term of romantic endearment.”

Behind Epps, Lennox burst out laughing his eyes watering and his sides aching from the force of it, “You’re kidding?” Optimus blinked at him confused, “You’re really not? Who knew, just say something romantic and you can fluster the ever stoic Optimus Prime. That’s hilarious.”

“What’s so funny?” Karma asked from the doorway.

“Nothing,” Lennox told her as he tried to settle down, “You get everything?”

She walked further in to hand him her notes and the file, “Yeah. He gave me everything he knew, including the name of someone above him that would know more. Oh, and he asked for water.”

“Great. I’ll get this to Maggie and see if she can locate them. Mikaela you wanna grab that water? Good work, Karma.”

Mikaela headed out of the room for the mess hall as Lennox started reading over the notes with Optimus. Prowl stood to the glass studying Harry more and Epps stood by the door watching Karma stand awkwardly in her place.

After a minute she shifted and raised her hand like she was in school, “Do you guys have a bathroom? Cause I have yet to be shown one of those.”

“Yeah. Epps will you escort her please?” Lennox responded without looking up.

“Sure, man,” Epps nodded as he opened the door for her.

“Thanks,” she said as she waited for him to lead the way.

It was a much quieter walk than it had been earlier. Everyone seemed stiffer with her and less willing to share now that she had done as she was asked too. She was glad it wasn’t far to the bathroom.

“I’ll be just a minute,” she told Epps as she slipped inside and shut the door behind her.

She gave a sigh of relief as she leaned back against the door. She flipped the deadbolt lock behind her and stepped away to access the room. A smile grew on her face as she spotted what she had suspected was waiting for her, an air vent high on the wall above one of the stalls.

“So much for classified meaning well kept,” she laughed to herself as she pulled herself up and started on the screws with a bobby pin she had snagged from Mikaela’s bathroom.

A few seconds later she pulled the vent cover free and carefully balanced it within reach of the opening before climbing inside and replacing the vent. She turned on the flashlight on Lennox’s phone she had stolen before she had announced herself earlier and started crawling. 500 feet and one hummed French lullaby later she found herself looking down on the main hangar she had arrived in.

“Guess this is my exit,” Karma sighed as she unfolded the bobby pin to reach the screws to the vent cover.

Once it was free she gripped it hard and pushed so she wouldn’t drop it. She placed it behind her and let herself slide out onto the crate below before slowly making her way down to the floor. It was only after she had made it halfway across the hangar that an alarm finally sounded.

Back in the interrogation room Harry was practically roaring with laughter, “Too slow! If she’s even still here tell her I expect that 50 bucks in cash!”

“What’s going on?” Mikaela asked as she ran in.

“According to Harry, Karma gave Epps the slip,” Prowl told her calmly.

Epps burst in behind her panting something about an empty bathroom and magic.

Lennox handed the file to Optimus and dragged Epps back out with him towards the bathroom.

Back with Karma she was trying to not look like that reason the alarm was going off. Which was easy considering she was wearing standard issues clothes but also extremely difficult because she had less than a clue of what her proper response was supposed to be.

She backed up out of the crowd and bumped into a car, “I know I should be asking myself why the military has a Lamborghini on base but I don’t really have an answer for myself,” she said to herself as she opened the door and climbed inside. 

As the door slammed shut Sideswipe was startled out of his stasis nap.

“Wha- Wait, who are you? And why is the alarm going off?” he asked as he fully woke up.

Karma jumped and gripped the seat as she looked around, “Who said that?”

“Ow! Easy with the nails on the leather!”

“You’re the car?” Karma asked as she immediately let go of the seat and turned in her seat to make sure she was really alone in the car.

“It’s a Lamborghini and the name’s Sideswipe. Who are you and how did you get on base?”

Karma sat forward again and glanced around anxiously, “Karma, I was brought to base to interrogate the mafia informate.”

“Got it,” he said before lightening his tone, “So you’re why the alarm is going off. You gotta tell me who you manage to ditch and how you did it.”

Karma relaxed a little into the seat as she smiled a little, “Epps, in the bathroom, crawled through the air vents.”

Sideswipe laughed loudly and fully to the point where Karma felt his frame shake beneath her.

“That funny, huh?” Karma asked, laughing a bit herself.

“Hilarious. They’ve got to be beyond themselves with it. Is your name really ‘Karma’? I thought that was what you humans refer to as ‘what comes around goes around’.”

“It is. My mother has an… odd sense of humor. Then again maybe she wasn’t being funny and she’s been crazy a lot longer than I originally thought,” she explained as she gave the radio an awkward smile having pinpointed where his voice was coming from.

“I’m not saying it’s bad. It’s actually pretty cool as far as human names go,” there was a beat of silence before he spoke again, “So how long do you plan on hiding exactly?”

“Uh, as long as it takes. No one seems all that friendly no that they’ve gotten what they wanted out of my being here. I’d rather leave before they decide I can’t. I’d really rather not go through someone else deciding if and when I’m allowed to leave somewhere again.”

“I doubt Optimus would let them keep you here against your own free will. He’s pretty big on humans getting to choose for themselves. It’s sort of his thing actually,” he reassured her.

“Yeah, no offense but I don’t know any of you enough to trust you.”

“Yet here you are talking to a car.”

“It’s a Lamborghini. And I said I didn’t trust you not that I wasn’t crazy,” Karma smirked.

He laughed again before he started his engine and pulled out of his secret nap spot.

“Where are we going?” Karma asked, “You’re turning me in aren’t you?”

“Actually I was going to offer to take you wherever you want, but if you want to turn yourself in I can show you how to get back to interrogation,” he answered as he stopped again.

Karma sat back and crossed her arms, “I doubt they’ll let you off base while I’m still MIA.”

Sideswipe revved his engine, “They’ll have to catch me first.”

Karma thought on it for about half a second before grinning, “Show me what you got.”

“Where too?”

“Anywhere. Just driving fast.”

His engine revved in agreement before he sped off through the open hangar doors, across the tarmac, and straight through the barrier arm gate. Karma was grinning the entire time, giving an excited giggle as the Autobot raced off down the road from the base. The guards could faintly be heard shouting after them, no doubt more upset about having to replace the arm and be the ones to tell the higher up what had happened than the fact that they had actually done it.

“They’re gonna be pissed,” Karma said, still laughing as she twisted in her seat to watch the base shrink in the distance.

The radio crackled back to life, “Let’s worry about that later.”

“So now that we’re out, you gonna tell me who you were hiding from?” she asked as she settled into her seat again.

“I wasn’t-” Karma gave the radio a pointed look, “Our medic, Ratchet. I was supposed to have a check up this morning but I’ve been hiding all day.”

Karma snorted, “I don’t blame you. All of the doctors I’ve ever met work for the mafia or deal with psych patients all day, neither were pleasant.”

“The mafia?  _ You’re  _ apart of the mafia?” his metallic voice was full of his disbelief.

“Born into it,” she sighed as she leaned against the window to watch the world blur past, “Parents were two rival leaders and there was this one night of drunken negotiating. Nine months later mom had me. I always figured that’s why she named me Karma, you know. But it wasn’t like the movies or books so I ended up faking my death and running away at 16. I’ve been hiding in a mental hospital ever since,” she glanced back at the radio, “What about you? What’s your story?”

“Planet wide civil war destroyed my planet and now I’m a refuge on yours. Lost my twin on the way here, he’s still missing too. Oh! And I get to deal with hardafts like Ratchet and Prowl every day.”

Karma clicked her tongue at the awkward silence that followed his statement, “That’s rough buddy.”

“Buddy?” the radio crackled, “Does that mean we’re friends now?”

“Sure. But uh, what exactly are the…” She waved her hands in front of herself as she tried to think of the English word she was looking for, “...makings of ‘friendship’? Never really had one of those before.”

Sideswipe made a quick turn as he responded, “Really? Huh, well according to the internet the human idea of a friend is, ‘a person whom one knows and with whom one has a bond of mutual affection, typically exclusive of sexual or family relations’. Does that help any?”

“Sure.” there was a beat, “Wait! You’re telling me you just did a google search while driving and talking to me?” she gestured wildly as she mentally tried to put the pieces together, “How?

“I’m tapped into the internet,” he said, not really catching that she genuinely was confused.

She gestured for him to elaborate, “So like… your mind’s a computer or…?”

“Yes.”

Her aggravated groan was drowned out by a sudden horn behind them. Both human and Autobot seemed to jump out of their skin at the noise, Sideswipe even swerving a bit. Karma whirled around to see what could have possible caught them at their current speed.

“Uh, Peterbilt 379 semi, no trailer, very expensive custom paint job. Friend of yours?” she said over her shoulder to the radio.

“Not exactly,” Sideswipe answered as he slowed and pulled off the road into a cliff side turn around.

Karma squeezed her eyes shut in silent prayer, “Please don’t tell me it’s a Decepticon.”

“I wish,” he barked, “No this is much worse. My boss, Optimus.”

“Optimus Prime? Yeah, I met him. Face planted into him after running through the base with Mikaela. Not the most professional of meetings but I did make him blush.”

The rearview mirror turned to look at her, “Oh, you definitely have to tell me how you did that if we live through this.”

“Sure thing.” the door swung open and she stepped out to face the semi, “Seriously though, who’s the lucky person that gets to repaint that by hand when it needs it? That is no easy or short task,” she whispered to Sideswipe as Optimus came to a stop behind them.

“It’s handpainted?” Sideswipe asked as Lennox climbed out of the passenger side.

“Unless alien robots have a shortcut for that sort of thing.”

“You told her?” Lennox seethed as he stomped over, Optimus seeming content to let the man handle things while in Karma’s presence.

Sideswipe shifted on his tires as if he wanted to race away but wasn’t willing to leave Karma to take all of the heat.

“Actually, Harry did while you guys were distracted. You however, just confirm it,” Karma stepped in before the Autobot could be yelled at again, “Don’t tell him that though, I don’t have any cash on me.”

“No need for my holoform then,” Sideswipe sighed before he abruptly transformed.

Karma instantly jumped, stepping back quickly as she grabbing at the small of her back, instinctively reaching for the gun that wasn’t there. Her ocean eyes filled with terror as she grappled with her fight or flight response and her lack of options. Still stumbling backwards she tripped into Lennox, making her jump away from him as well, backing towards the cliff side.

That had all three men panicking.

“Wait! Don’t go that way,” Lennox tried as he stepped towards her slowly.

Karma however- through a rather fear and anxiety induced thought pattern- had deemed jumping into the ocean her only absolute escape from this waking nightmare. She kept backing up from them, still holding the small of her back as if a weapon would manifest itself to save her.

Optimus brought up his holoform just behind her and she crashed into him within the same second it had solidified. She whirled around, breathing hard, as she started to shake and tears no one had noticed spilled over endlessly. He grabbed her hand to ground her and softened his expression as he stepped closer to whisper reasurences in her ear.

It took a good 15 minutes but she relaxed into the holoform, her legs suddenly unwilling to hold her any longer as exhaustion washed over her. His other arm came up to wrap around her, hoping to shop the shaking before she ended up passing out entirely on him. Lennox let out the breath he had been holding, thankful for the internet considering he had no idea what had been going on until Optimus jumped in.

“What happened?” Sideswipe asked quietly, afraid to do much of anything after the whole ordeal.

Optimus looked over Karma’s head as he answered him, “She had a panic attack. No doubt a remaining side effect of the environment of her upbringing. It’s not your fault Sideswipe, you had no idea she would react like that.”

Sideswipe nodded slowly, his eyes focused on the human woman’s shaking form and the slow circles Optimus was rubbing into her back.

“She’ll be fine, Sides. Let’s get back to base and see if there’s anything else Ratchet can do for her,” Lennox sighed as he walked towards the bot, “I need to break the news to Morshower that she found out. And see if Epps figured out how she gave him the slip.”

“Your air vents are big enough for someone to crawl through,” came a muffled horse whisper.

Lennox and Sideswipe looked back as Karma pulled away from Optimus, shaky but unwilling to be held up. She rubbed at her throat and tried to clear it as she whipped away stray tears with the other hand. She looked absolutely exhausted, her face still too pale stained with tear tracks and her eyes watery.

“I opened up the vent in the bathroom and crawled through it. I was halfway across the hangar before the alarm even sounded. And I don’t need to see a doctor, I’ll be just fine after some water and some rest,” she explained slowly.

Lennox nodded and gestured towards Optimus’ altmode for them to head back. Optimus waited until she had made it to the other man before dissipating his holoform and starting his engine. She let Lennox help her climb up into the cab of the semi without complaint and closed her eyes to settle into the leather seat.

Below her Lennox couldn’t hold back his laugh, “Maybe you should just lay down in the back,” he joked.

“Which is it? Do you want me to lay down in the back or do you want to not lose your all important Autobot leader?” Karma shot back, peeking down at him with one eye, her voice starting to clear up.

He shook his head despite his grin and shut the door to climb in the other side of the semi.

In front of them Sideswipe finally transformed back into his altmode, opting to follow Optimus back to base. He was already in enough trouble and really didn’t need to be adding to the list of things he would be getting an audio receptor full of later.


End file.
